Has anyone noticed the new Gmail integration with VoIP services?  On my Gmail, I now get the “Call Phone” feature. 

After downloading an additional plugin, clicking on that button will bring up a dialpad with my current Google Voice balance. 

Calls made with this method to the U.S.A. or Canadian phone numbers are free (no change there).  The coolest part is just the ease of access with this method.  Google, you make incredible products – don’t stop!  Oh dear, problem with messing with Google Voice in the dead of morning is that you can accidentally click the call button when you are trying to back out because Google’s AJAX search will start to automatically match what you have typed.  And by pressing the “Enter” key when typing to quickly, I may have just woke up one of the managers at the retail store I work for…oops.  Sorry about that, you know who you are. =( 

I guess I better stop playing and go sleep already as I have a full day’s work tomorrow – life is good!

Today’s deal of the day is brought to you by EverydaySource which is offering a travel charger that will charge your Samsung Behold, Eternity, Omnia, Impression, or Instinct.  The best part?  It’ll only set you back by $0.99 with free shipping.  Simply use code  S8TCSM at checkout.  You’ll need to make sure that you are signed in to use the coupon.

Today, I went in to Micro Center to purchase a charger and a screen protector for my iPod Touch.  When I was there, I noticed a couple of displays totally filled with all the various kinds of stereo docks for the iPod.  Ranging from $50 all the way up to about $300, I was pretty amazed.  I never thought that so many products could exist to serve the same function – to be able to play music straight from the player using more powerful speakers.  Now granted, these self contained units can only provide so many watts of power.  Anyone out there use there home stereo system attached to an iPod?  This could be done by way of a 3.5mm male plug from the iPod’s headphones out to a red/white RCA connector which could then be plugged into a receiver unit which would send the signal path out to the various speakers.  Currently I’m running a sound system mixed with big box (by big I mean they are like the size of a desktop computer’s external card board packaging) Pioneers – 4 of them, with a Bose center speaker connected to a Sony receiver.  I’m thinking of getting my iPod hooked up to that.  Now, I wonder how long it will take before we start seeing more devices as well as artists that will publish DVD-Audio with 5.1 sound.  Currently the only one I’ve heard so far is by Blue Man Group – and that is impressive stuff.

So, what do you guys hook up your music players to?  A big sound system?  A smaller setup?  Or just headphones?

Not long ago, my son had to spend some time in the hospital (he is much better now).  When we first arrived at the emergency room, we had nothing to entertain ourselves for the next eight hours or so except my iPad.  This turned out to be fortuitous.  Unlike the Kindle, with its monochromatic screen, the ipad’s full color monitor allows it to display crisp and vibrant full color images.  So…how did this help us in the hospital?  Two words.  Picture books.  If I had brought my Kindle, there would have been no way for me to read age appropriate stories to my five-year old son.  With the iPad, however, I was able to find a picture book in the iBook Store and read that all night.

In addition to including a few existing picture books in the various book stores, there are also quite a few freestanding eBooks aimed at young children.  One of my favorites is The Wrong Side Of The Bed.  This is a really fun story about a boy who wakes up, “on the wrong side of the bed” to find everything turned upside down.  His quest is to find a way to put things right…and right side up.

The book does a fantastic job of really using all of the iPad’s resources.  Not only that, the artwork is just spectacular, exactly the kind of bright colors and vivid details that are going to keep kids coming back for more.

Of course, just reading the story is not always going to be enough.  In addition to reading the story yourself, you can also choose to have the story read to you.  With this option, the eBook doubles as an audio book, with the author’s recorded voice reading the book to you, as well as a complete musical score.  This is perfect for younger children learning to read.  They can listen to the words and follow along on the pages.   Of course, this is also a perfect option for those lazy parents who don’t want to read to their kids themselves.

If we were going to stop there, this would be a pretty cool standalone book app.  But in addition to all of that, this one also comes in 3D.  Sure, you will have to find yourself some of those red and blue 3D glasses (you can order them straight from the app for a whopping $0.75 (the picture does not translate well without the glasses, but trust me, it looks pretty cool).  This really adds something impressive to the app.  The 3D images just pop off the screen and straight into your living room.  I thought this 3D effect was fantastic.  It really worked well without putting the technology ahead of the story.

I have to say that I have never been a fan of the comparison between the iPad and the Kindle (though Chris did take a great stab at it).  They really are apples and oranges, using very different forms of technology.  At the same time, even Kindle users will have to be impressed by this one.  Not only does it offer stunning, full color artwork, and a full soundtrack, but it does it all in eye popping 3D.   No other device offers that kind of entertainment. .

The Wrong Side Of The Bed is available in the iTunes App store from Seehere Studios for $2.99 for the iPad and $1.99 for the iPod Touch and iPhone.

I enjoy games.  I grew up around the stuff as my mom used to play Frogger and Star Raiders on the Atari 800 while I was still in the womb.  Currently I’m playing Star Trek Online and Star Craft 2: Wings of Liberty.  Sure, these aren’t exactly mobile games, but that’s certainly something I’m sure that will change in the course of time.  It used to be that you needed a pretty powerful computer to play certain games…in the case of Star Craft, it’s been years between the original Star Craft and Star Craft 2 where now I can comfortably play the original Star Craft on a netbook.  Star Craft 2 which is the follow up – well…that’s going to take a bit of time before I can play that one on something mobile.  One thing for sure, many publications out there feel that netbooks are heading to extinction.  Frankly put, I could care less.  With the rise of the netbook, there are now many more choices of smaller full featured laptops at lower price points.

So, in closing, what type of gamer are you (hardcore, casual, average) / what type of games do you play (real time strategy, flight sim, puzzle, simulation, massively multiplayer, first person shooter, role playing, etc.)?  I like real time strategy the best with role playing games being second.  I especially enjoy games that can combine elements from several types in a well thought out manner.

Have a fun week!
-Timothy